BitMart Pulls Utility for Hong Kong VASP License

Crypto trade BitMart withdrew its software for a digital asset service supplier license in Hong Kong.

Based on the checklist of digital asset buying and selling platforms maintained by the Hong Kong regulator, the Securities and Futures Fee (SFC), BitMart withdrew its software on Thursday.

This adopted related choices by different crypto buying and selling platforms. Main crypto trade Bybit utilized final yr however withdrew its software on the finish of Might 2024. Equally, OKX withdrew its software on the finish of Might, as did Gate.

As Cointelegraph reported on the time, a wave of crypto exchanges withdrew their purposes forward of a deadline that noticed the native regulator expel all unlicensed platforms. This was a consequence of stringent necessities for native crypto exchanges.

Associated: Hong Kong warns of fraud danger after new stablecoin guidelines

Excessive necessities for Hong Kong crypto exchanges

Hong Kong legal guidelines require any centralized crypto platform working on its territory or advertising and marketing to native traders to be licensed by the SFC. Licensing requires platforms to maintain liquid property equal to at the least 12 months of working bills and preserve at the least 5 million Hong Kong {dollars} ($641,490) value of paid-up share capital.

Moreover, 98% of consumer property should stay in chilly storage, and transfers are restricted to whitelisted addresses solely. Regulators require strict key administration, and insurance coverage should cowl 100% of scorching storage and 50% chilly storage holdings.

New guidelines for crypto custody companies permitted earlier this month additionally additional tighten controls and ban counting on good contracts for chilly pockets administration.

In 2025, Hong Kong awarded operational licenses to 4 crypto exchanges to this point: PantherTrade, YAX, Bullish and BGE. In complete, 11 crypto exchanges at present function as licensed crypto exchanges in Hong Kong, as proven under.

Associated: Animoca and Commonplace Chartered type stablecoin enterprise in Hong Kong

Hong Kong goals to turn into a crypto hub

Hong Kong is growing its rigorous crypto regulatory framework to assist a crypto trade, leveraging its place as a monetary hub. The technique is already bearing its fruits, with CMB Worldwide Securities Restricted, a subsidiary of the China Retailers Financial institution (CMB) — one in all China’s high banks — lately launching a crypto trade in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong regulators additionally goal to ascertain a stable stablecoin regulatory base, with the Hong Kong Financial Authority having finalized its regulatory framework for stablecoin issuers earlier this month. This framework was additionally stringent sufficient to negatively affect some native companies.

Identical to the crypto trade guidelines, the introduction of the brand new stablecoin framework led to related native firms posting double-digit losses on Aug. 1. Analysts on the time described the sell-off as a wholesome correction, as the necessities for stablecoin issuers proved to be extra stringent than anticipated.